New Beginnings.

20

Six months had passed since Thanksgiving, and we were all preparing for Summer break. After that conversation with Cullen, we continued to discuss my issues; it was strange opening up to someone so in-depth, but I did, and it felt comfortable. He helped me see how I needed to focus on myself and heal before jumping into anything with anyone. I hated to say goodbye to Cullen and Tuck at the end of their leave, but we had been keeping in touch. 

Stacia and Derrick were still going strong; in fact, Derrick had asked permission to marry her and was planning to propose to her this weekend. I was working hard with school and at the coffee shop. My friendship with Tarran and Millie was terrific; it felt like adding two sisters to the group. We all still hung out together, and they stood by me when I had to testify against Haden, who thankfully was serving some lengthy time due to various other incidents he managed to get himself into. In that six-month time frame, I had finally sat down with Liam, I explained how wonderful he was and enjoyed our time, but perhaps I needed time to work on myself before jumping into something. He was hurt at first, accepting and wanting to "wait," as he put it. So, we've remained friends and spend a lot of time together. I started seeing a therapist regularly, and it has been an enormous help. As suggested by my therapist, I spent the Christmas Holiday with Stacia and her family, accepting the love they were giving me. It was nice and felt good. Life was good, and things were coming together as I had always wanted.

"We have officially finished our first year of college!" Stacia cheered when we entered the apartment together. "I can't believe you are taking summer courses; we need time for vacation and fun!!" She grabbed drinks for us from the fridge.

"Sorry, I'm a dedicated nerd." I laughed.

"This is true." She giggled. "But tonight, we celebrate! I think everyone is going to be there. I hear there is a surprise for someone too." Stacia winked at me. I tried to hide my reaction; how in the world could she know? Derrick would be devastated if his surprise proposal got ruined.

"Surprise for who?" I played dumb.

"I'm not sure." She sang. I shook my head, hoping she'd drop it. I grabbed my backpack and took my things to my room, cleaning out and organizing things. I heard my phone ping and checked my messages. I smiled, seeing a text from Cullen.

"How's my favorite girl? -Cullen"

"Favorite girl, eh? Do you say that to all your friends? – Avery"

"Ah, I only have a select few friends. What are you guys up to this weekend? – Cullen"

"Tonight is a party at Froggie's to celebrate the end of school, then I get to work the rest of the weekend. What about you? – Avery"

"Working, of course. I just thought I'd check-in, be safe tonight, and have fun! -Cullen"

"Don't work too hard. – Avery"

I enjoyed how close Cullen and I had become; our friendship had been developing nicely. I knew he said he was interested in me, but I think expressing all of my reservations and issues, he realized I wasn't ready for that, and he wanted to respect my space and my relationship with Liam. Cullen was also 24, and in a different phase of life, he was definitely becoming a great friend, and I was thankful for him.